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March 17, 2012

No Expanded Replay For 2012

Major League Baseball says expanded replay is out for this year, with the goal now to put the extra looks in play for 2013.

Baseball had sought to increase video reviews this season to include trapped balls, fair-or-foul rulings down the lines and fan interference all over the ballpark.

The additional replay required the approval of MLB and the unions representing the umpires and the players.

"We weren't able to come up with an acceptable set of agreements between the three parties," MLB executive vice president for labor relations Rob Manfred told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "We hope we'll be able to do it in time for the 2013 season." ...

According to several people familiar with the situation, all of them speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity because the sides had not reached agreement, there were several sticking points.

Umpires were concerned the television feeds they received to review calls were not equal at every ballpark. The umps get fewer looks in Oakland, for example, than at Yankee Stadium.

Also at issue is how calls would be made under expanded replay and who would ask for a challenge. Would umpires still make the final decision, as they do now? Or would there be an NHL-style conference room with an MLB executive making the ruling?

Great. Baseball continues to not give a damn whether or not the correct calls are made. Games - and possibly playoff spots - could be decided by obviously wrong decisions by the on-field umpires. It's clearly not that important to the parties involved. ... Maybe I'm a dreamer, but I still anxiously await the day that baseball games are decided by what actually happens on the field.

For the relative peanuts they pay the umps, MLB can afford to have 15 more, 1 in each press box, to make the ruling from available TV feeds. No need for all umps to trudge to wherever their private peep-hole is. As for challenges, I haven't figured that one out yet. One common sense thought at a time.

Why the fuck are they relying on TV feeds anyway? Even with 20 cameras, you're relying on some guy with a pony tail and a dirty shirt to actually point the camera in the right place. Just put a closed-circuit set of cameras all over the park and let the umps look at those views. When somebody robs your store, do you ask the public if anyone filmed it, or do you just look at the cameras you have set up to monitor every inch of the store?

But you don't want 7-Eleven quality, you still want hi-def with zooming capabilities. So these ballpark cams could be run by people who are trained to film the ball/the action at all times, as opposed to the clenched hands of fans or the moon.

I cannot understand what is so difficult about coming to a decision regarding replay! It seems like it should be so simple. At the very least, boundary calls and close plays at each base should be considered for review (that is just off the top of my head - I'm sure I've overlooked other opportunities).

Good point made, though, about the extra wildcards getting through with little effort. Apparently revenue opportunities are easier to negotiate than the officiating process.